Our Kiosk – an elegant summer parlour since 1860

1859Establishment of the Kiosk

From the earliest days of the Tomaselli era, the Café was an important social and private meeting point for Salzburg's middle classes. The opening of the Empress Elisabeth Railway in 1860 also drew crowds of tourists to Salzburg and attracted new guests to the renowned Café. Carl Tomaselli was far-sighted enough to build a coffee pavilion just at the right time in 1859/60.

"Tomaselli's elegant gazebo on the market square is already a favourite stomping ground of tourists."

Salzburger Zeitung 22. August 1860

A coffee pavilion for Salzburg

The site for this small, elegant summer parlour was the plot of land diagonally opposite the Café, which connected the Alter Markt to the Residenz palace. It was there that, in 1699, Archbishop Johann Ernst Graf Thun threw a public festival to celebrate the visiting bride of Emperor Josef I,

at which it was said that the wine flowed freely from the public fountains. The press hailed the opening and the Kiosk's visitors were delighted to taste the first ice cream of the season. In 1870, ten years after its opening, the Kiosk was expanded to include a guest garden.